Kisses
by and music
Summary: "Someone's gonna give Mikan lots of kisses tomorrow at the school rooftop!" Or so the rumor says. Natsume's out to kill the bastard before that even happens. And Ruka discusses the pros and cons of being Natsume's best friend. Mikan/? COMPLETE.
1. Rumors

**Kisses**

* * *

><p>"<em>Someone's gonna give Mikan lots of kisses tomorrow at the school rooftop!" Or so the rumor says. Natsume's out to kill the bastard before that even happens. And Ruka discusses the pros and cons of being Natsume's best friend. Mikan?_

* * *

><p><strong>Zero*Clue:<strong> Hm… I don't have much to say, really. It's kinda predictable. Really. And pathetically so.

**Warning/s: **Uhm, OOC Ruka! Pissed off Natsume. And some OOCness in his part too.

This story has been sitting around for, like, two years now.

I'm serious.

I just always lose inspiration to write it. But now it's here. FINALLY! It actually came out longer than I expected, so instead of a 6000 word oneshot, I'm splitting this into three parts. Yay? Anyways, enjoy!

* * *

><p><strong>Rumors<strong>

* * *

><p>To say that Natsume Hyuuga was, at the moment, <em>mad,<em> was an understatement. Ruka knew that much. He was _not_ mad. He was _not_ angry, either.

He was furious. Infuriated. Seething. And, for lack of better words, _beyond pissed_. Natsume was any and every adjective that was synonymous to states of great annoyance and rage combined.

"Natsume…" Ruka gently brushed his hand through his ferret's fur. "You're burning your essay."

Natsume ignored his bestfriend and continued to glare a hole through his assignment paper. Literally. Ruka sighed. Sad to say, this was not even the beginning of Natsume's manifestations of anger. Even sadder still, Ruka was stuck sitting through all of Natsume's rage episodes.

It came with the 'bestfriend' thing.

"Maybe what Mochu said was just a nasty rumor." Ruka tried again, coaxing the fire caster to converse with him. "I mean, this is Mikan we're talking about. Lots of false rumors have been flying about her ever since she started to get secret admirer notes."

Natsume's left eye twitched, though his eyes never left their piercing gaze at his essay. It was as if it was the paper's fault. Ruka will have to remind him later (when the kuroneko is in a better mood – Ruka wondered when that will be) that said paper was due tomorrow. But that was for later. Now, he opted to ask his friend, "You didn't know?"

Natsume shook his head. The silence made Ruka continue talking, if only because he had nothing better to do. Getting Natsume to calm down was a tough job, even for Ruka. So instead, the Ruka decided to humor the Black Cat with what he (Natsume) silently pleaded to know (well, he was pleading in Ruka's mind – on knees and all).

"Hm, well it's not that bad. She only got two or three admirers, from what I heard. She didn't answer any of 'em, though." At this, Ruka risked a smile. "It's a wonder how oblivious you can be about the girl you're stalking."

Ruka immediately regretted saying all he said when he saw the fire seeping through the paper and burning the wooden table that innocently stood in front of them. How unfortunate for the table.

"If it helps…" Mochu started. He should have escaped Natsume's wrath a while ago, but he was held down by said kuroneko's orders to stay, and the boy never left his side since. He did not want to die early, after all. Natsume glared at Mochu.

"Repeat everything you heard." Natsume ordered, cutting Mochu in mid-sentence. Though his voice was in a tone that would strike fear to many, Mochu was only a little more than intimidated. Natsume was a friend, after all. He would not kill poor Mochu…

… Right? It was hard to tell when Mikan was in the picture.

"W-well… I was walking in Central Town with Kitsuneme. We were looking for Koko and Yuu. They had been missing the whole morning." Mochu internally winced at the annoyed look Natsume gave him. Really, was it so hard to give Natsume the news without making yourself seem like the criminal? And besides, Natsume asked to know _everything_. Mochu couldn't just skip directly to what he overheard Mikan was talking. It ruins the story!

"Then?" Ruka asked.

"Uhm... We couldn't find them in Central Town so we stopped at a café for a while. Then I saw Mikan sitting at the table near us." At this, Natsume's interest intensified tenfold. Mochu gulped. It was hard being the narrator. Why couldn't Kitsuneme have eavesdropped as well? "She was talking to Hotaru excitedly about some guy who was planning to give her kisses tomorrow. But that was all I heard. They left shortly after that."

"Are you sure it was a guy?" Ruka asked. Then he internally facepalmed. "N-nevermind. I suppose it would only make it worse – if not awkward – if it was a girl."

Silence resumed after that. Natsume decided to glare at the wall this time. Thankfully, Natsume's fire couldn't burn through the cement. At least not yet (because Ruka knows Natsume's fire is a different kind of fire. It burns through _water_, for heaven's sake.). A few more moments later, Natsume stood up.

"Natsume?" Mochu and Ruka watched the boy walk away. He stopped at the doorframe.

"Let's go Ruka." Was Natsume's simple order before walking out. Ruka obediently followed. How he dreaded being the kuroneko's bestfriend right now.

* * *

><p>It was around 1 p.m. when Natsume actually decided to hunt the guy – or the "soon-to-be-dead bastard", as Natsume would have it. Well, '<em>decided'<em> was a strong word. It was more like Ruka forced Natsume to eat some lunch before actually hunting the guy.

"You can't kill a bastard with a conflagration of flames and embers on an empty stomach!" Ruka cheerfully added (Mikan was seriously rubbing off on him) when he was able to make Natsume sit down and actually chew on something edible. Well, it was more like Natsume reluctantly and violently chomped down on the poor vegetables and meat. Hurriedly, Ruka might add. Ruka was definitely beyond amused; all fear of being incinerated vanished when he reminded himself that he "was, is, and will always be Natsume's bestfriend." It was one of the one-way tickets to a safe life in Alice Academy.

Of course, one of the other tickets would be stealing Natsume's heart. Although Ruka would have to double think that someday. How was that working out for Mikan's hair again?

Anyway, back to the hunt. Natsume's hunting squad consisted of four brave soldiers. Or rather, one enraged general, one amused second-in-command, and two unwilling privates. The five-star general was, of course, Natsume; all of his rage was focused on the current mission: find the soon-to-be-dead bastard, kill the soon-to-be-dead bastard, and burn the by-then-dead-beyond-recognition bastard's body. His second-in-command was his loyal bestfriend Ruka, who was always and eternally thankful for the privileges of being Natsume's bestfriend (such as having an automatic anti-fire immunity). The third and fourth members were the unwilling privates, Kitsuneme and Mochu. Kitsuneme and Mochu tried to escape (of course), but Fortune had not been so favorable on them. Oh well. More amusement for Ruka's pleasure.

Three hours later…

"Natsume, there's nothing you can do about it..." Ruka bravely spoke after a while of pointless searching. Natsume gave him a deadly glare, but that was all. No blood was shed on Ruka's part. Once again, the benefits of the 'bestfriend' label. "... unless we have some way to find out who Mikan's meeting tomorrow."

"But Hotaru and Mikan won't talk. They were avoiding any chance of ta;king with us at least." Kitsuneme said. Natsume hissed. "But I think Mikan's oblivious as to why Hotaru wants to avoid talking. Seems like she doesn't know we're on to her."

"And Mikan has a lot of admirers. Well, not as many as you guys, of course. But there's a good few." Mochu pointed out. At this, Natsume walked away. He suddenly had a _brilliant_ idea.

"Let's go Ruka. I know what we're gonna do." He said without glancing back to see if his follower (ahem, I mean _bestfriend_) would come along. Natsume wasn't going to give him a choice, really.

"Where are we going?"

"We're gonna eliminate a few people."

* * *

><p>("Does this mean we're free?" Mochu whispered. When no answer came, he and Kitsuneme quietly took off to the opposite direction.)<p>

* * *

><p>"Tsubasa Andou, Ken Hiroto, Akira Hikari…" Anna's voice trailed off. "Oh! And there's this exchange student from Britain's Alice Academy. His name is John Smith, I think."<p>

"Thank you, Anna!" Yuu said, his shoulders slumping down as if a huge burden had been lifted. He let out a sigh of relief. "You don't know how much my life depended on this!"

"Well, they're not exactly secret anymore, so I don't see the harm in telling you." She said. "Why do you need to know, anyway? Don't tell me…"

"No!" Yuu cried. "It's not me. It's Natsume-kun."

Anna blinked. "Natsume...? Oh, I see. He must have heard the rumor."

"What rumor?"

"You didn't know? But Natsume hired you…" Anna stopped to think for a second. Yuu shook his head in response to her question. "Well, there's a rumor going around that someone's gonna give Mikan a kiss at the school rooftop."

"What?" Yuu paled. He knew it wasn't his responsibility, but it felt like another burden weighed heavily on his shoulders. Perhaps it was just Class Rep instincts. "Who?"

"I don't know." Anna said. "Nobody does. And Hotaru's dragging Mikan somewhere safe from prying people, although Mikan doesn't seem to know that she's being talked about."

"Oh dear. Natsume's gonna kill someone!"


	2. The Hunt

**The Hunt  
><strong>

* * *

><p>Ruka felt sorry for Yuu. Really, he did. Yuu was worrying about the whole situation too much, even though he wasn't really involved. Ah, the stress.<p>

Of course, he _really_ wasn't involved. Was he? Ruka began to wonder if Yuu was. He didn't seem like the type who would go after Mikan. Even if he did like her, Ruka doubted that he would have the courage to make the first move. And if he did, Mikan was too stupid – oh forgive him, Ruka meant _dense_ – to figure out that Yuu was trying to kiss her. Unless Yuu told her directly, of course. But what were the chances of _that_ happening?

"Are you Ken Hiroto?" Natsume said, his voice dripping with venom. The boy he addressed silently nodded, a small smile gracing his lips.

Ruka gave him a once over. He was quite tall and perhaps only about a year older than Natsume. Raven hair, intense eyes, a lean but toned body... He was almost like a clone of the kuroneko. Except for the smiling, gentle disposition. Their personalities clashed like fire and rain.

"Is there a problem, Hyuuga-san?" He asked politely. His hands however, were shaking, as Ruka observed. The blond boy suddenly pitied the boy in front of him.

"Actually, there is." Natsume glowered, each step was menacing and intimidating for Ken. "I heard you asked Mikan to the school dance four months ago?"

"W-what?" Ken said. "Uhm, we were both from the Special Abilities Class. So I thought we could hang out at the dance. As senpai and kouhai, and nothing more. Honest! Everyone's a sibling at the Special Abilities Class!"

Ruka's eyes softened. Natsume's, however, did not. "Do you like her?"

"Not romantically. No."

"Are you the one who's gonna kiss her tomorrow?"

"No! I promise, it wasn't me!"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Really, I am. Please don't kill me…"

Ruka sighed. It was nice knowing Ken for those good two minutes of his life.

* * *

><p>"Natsume!" Tsubasa exclaimed. He gave a small wave. "What's a brat like you doing here?"<p>

Natsume's left eye twitched.

"Oh, is it about the rumor?"

Twitch. Twitch.

"Well, don't worry. It's not me, if that's what you're thinking."

TWITCH. GLARE.

"Haha, scary." Tsubasa gave a lighthearted laugh. "Look, if it makes you feel any better, I'll even tell you that Mikan's definitely _not_ gonna get kissed tomorrow. If she was, I would've beaten the guy up before you'd even know she was gonna get kissed in the first place."

"She's not?" Ruka asked in Natsume's place. The kuroneko was too busy twitching to speak.

"'Course not!" Tsubasa grinned. "I talked to her a while ago, and she said she wasn't."

"And what if you're lying?" Natsume said in a low voice. "You're just saying that to cover yourself up. You're gonna kiss her tomorrow, aren't ya?"

"Hey, hold up! I'm NOT kissing Mikan, okay? Nobody is!"

"Of course." Natsume falsely agreed. He smirked, raising his hands in mid-air. Tsubasa gulped. "I'm gonna make sure of that."

Ruka had never seen a more satisfied look on Natsume's face until now. Perhaps the fact that it was _Tsubasa_ he was incinerating helped calm the raven-haired boy somewhat. The poor fellow didn't even have a chance to dodge. Ruka silently gave an apologetic smile.

* * *

><p>The day soon ended, and around elevem boys were sent to the infirmary for severe, third-degree burns. The whole male population (minus Ruka) suddenly went out of their way to avoid the kuroneko, lest they be dead in the next two seconds. They certainly did not want to die yet.<p>

Ruka sighed as he read the list of names of the injured. He had to laugh at number six though. I mean, come on! John Smith? That has got to be the most retarded, overused name in the history of overused names. It was kind of cliché in Ruka's opinion. (No offense to all the John Smiths out there. Ruka meant no harm!)

"Natsume, you can't just send every single guy you see to the infirmary." Ruka said. "The school can't handle all those patients."

No, Ruka wasn't exactly interested in the wellbeing of the male population. He was more concerned that the clinic would get too crowded, and that the school would be deserted of any testosterone save for what he and Natsume had. And that meant rampaging fangirls. Yes, Ruka was more concerned for his wellbeing than for anyone else.

"Mikan's virgin lips cannot be stolen by some other bastard other than me!" Natsume angrily said as he paced through his room.

'_Are you admitting that you are a bastard as well?_' Ruka silently thought. "Well, why don't you just ask Mikan wh-"

"Ruka, don't be stupid." Natsume said. He sighed and let himself fall to his bed, arms outstretched. "I can't do that."

"Then how about Hotaru?"

Natsume scoffed. "I'd bet she'll ask for my whole allowance before she'd talk."

"Well, you're pretty rich anyway. It's not like you do a lot with your money." Ruka said, absentmindedly folding and unfolding the paper with the list of names. "Besides, it's better than burning the whole male population. Think of the effects that would have on our ozone layer!"

"I could definitely care less for our damn ozone layer." Natsume said. He covered his eyes with his arm.

"They protect us from the Sun, Natsume." Ruka said.

"Well, will it protect Mikan from boy cooties? No, I didn't think so."

"Boy cooties?" Ruka burst out laughing. Out loud. Natsume glared at his bestfriend. "What are you, five? There's no such thing as boy cooties!"

"Hmph. Yes there is."

"No, Natsume. There isn't."

"What do _you_ know?"

"I know that a certain fire caster is acting a bit too immature right now."

Natsume could only glare at Ruka childishly. Ruka laughed. Oh his day could not get any more amusing.

* * *

><p>"What are you two doing in front of my lab?" Hotaru monotonously asked her visitors. She did not open the door for them yet. She stood outside her room with them.<p>

Ruka gave a gentle smile. He was no longer afraid of Hotaru as much as he was before they were in highschool. Of course, that did not mean he no longer feared the Ice Queen. That was just impossible. However, he had developed a somewhat sadistic streak in him which made him understand Hotaru a bit better. It improved their relationship somewhat. At least he wasn't being manipulated as much as before. Sadism can apparently make you sensitive to other people manipulating you.

"I think you already know why." Natsume said. "Who is Mikan kissing tomorrow?"

"Ah, so you've heard." Hotaru's eyes sparked for a while. "Didn't Tsubasa tell you? No one's gonna kiss Mikan's lips tomorrow at the rooftop."

"Then what were the rumors about?" Ruka asked. "They couldn't have just sprung from nowhere."

It was then that the door to Hotaru's lab opened, revealing a very sleepy Mikan, clad in her pink pajamas. Natsume visibly blushed at this. Hotaru ignored it, Ruka smirked, and Mikan was too sleepy to notice. Not that she would have even if she was awake.

"What's going on, Hotaru-chan?" she asked sleepily. A yawn escaped from her lips. She turned to Ruka, then to Natsume. "Oh, you're here. Why?"

"I, uhm…" Natsume looked away, his bangs covering his eyes. "Nothing important."

Ruka chuckled. "We were just passing by, Mikan-chan. Natsume wanted to say goo- OW! Ugh, I meant… um, we wanted to wish Imai good luck on that contest of hers. By the way, we heard someone's gonna give you a kiss tomorrow at the school rooftop. Is that true, by any chance?"

Suddenly, Mikan's eyes widened as sleep vanished from her eyes. She was now wide awake, her voice louder than it was five seconds ago. She gave Ruka a startled look. "How did you know that?"

"So it's true?" Natsume said in a low voice. Hotaru simply watched from the sidelines.

"Well, kinda." Mikan said in an extremely happy voice. "He's not only gonna give me one. He's gonna give me lots and lots of kisses!"

Ruka was dumbfounded. Natsume was shocked. They didn't really know what to think at this point. Someone was gonna give Mikan a kiss… no, scratch that. Someone was gonna give Mikan _lots and lots of kisses_ tomorrow, and she was extremely happy about it? Was she hiding a relationship from them all this time? Ruka glanced at Natsume, whose eyes were once again covered by his glorious bangs. He put a hand on the kuroneko's shoulder.

"Idiot." Hotaru muttered. "Go back to sleep, Mikan."

"But-"

"Go."

"… Alright. Goodnight everyone!" The door closed behind her. Hotaru sighed, before walking up to Natsume and pulling a fistful of hair.

"Ow! Watch it Imai!" Natsume glared at Hotaru. The girl stared back with a blank expression.

"Listen to me carefully Hyuuga. I'll give you a hint about Mikan's guy." Hotaru said slowly. A smirk danced on her lips. Ruka knew this never led to anything good on their part. "For a small price, of course. Are you willing to pay, Mr. Black Cat?"

"How small would that price be?

"50, 000 Rabbits ought to do it."

"Deal."

"What?" Ruka exclaimed. How could Natsume just accept that bargain in a heartbeat? "Are you insane, Natsume?"

"I guess I am." Natsume said. He immediately fished for his wallet, and handed the blackmailer her money. Hotaru grabbed them greedily. Ruka sighed, facepalming. He rolled his eyes. That's love for ya…

"So spill, Imai." Natsume ordered. "Who is it?"

"I'm not telling." Hotaru said, pocketing the money. "I will only give you two hints. You're both smart. I'm sure you could figure it out."

"That doesn't seem fair though." Ruka said, but he was ignored. He frowned at this.

"First hint: the guy is close to Mikan." Hotaru started. "Well, they're not _that_ close, but they do see each other everyday. They're on speaking terms, of course. Second hint: He has blond hair. Or dirty blond, sort of a sandy color; you could go as far as saying it's brown. Take your pick."

"That's it?" Ruka asked incredulously.

"Yes. That's it. I'm not telling anymore."

"… Alright, thank you Imai." Natsume said, walking away. Ruka sighed in defeat.


	3. Suspects and Kisses

**Suspects (and Kisses)  
><strong>

* * *

><p>It was finally Monday morning, Natsume's dreaded day. Ruka, though he was looking forward for a little amusement, was <em>not<em> happy. Who would be when your deranged, emo, lovesick, stubborn bestfriend suddenly turns you into his emotional punching bag? They had been up all night fretting, worrying and trying to figure out who the damn soon-to-be-dead bastard was. Well, Natsume was the only one fretting actually. Ruka was too busy 'listening' (a.k.a. trying to doze off) to help. Halfway through his rant, Natsume didn't seem to notice though.

It was then Ruka was thankful he was not in love.

"Natsume, this is hopeless." Ruka said. "The only people who fit Imai's description are Yuu, Kitsuneme, Koko, Narumi-sensei-"

"And you." Natsume said.

"And me." Ruka admitted. "But you know it can't be me, right?"

"..."

"Oh come on, Natsume! It's not me! I'm your best friend for crying out loud!"

"That just makes it easier for you. You'd use that excuse to convince me it's not you."

"Natsume, you'd have to be an IDIOT to actually believe that."

"..."

"..."

"... Alright. Ruka, I believe you."

Ruka sighed, becoming eternally grateful to God and to every and all divine beings out there who made him Natsume's bestfriend. He probably wouldn't have survived in Alice Academy if he wasn't.

* * *

><p>"Ohayou minna-san!" Mikan cried out. She skipped (actually, really <em>skipped<em>) her way through the classroom, greeting everyone she passes by. Everyone greeted her warmly as well. Except for Hotaru, who fired her Baka Canon version 5.6. And Permy, but that was a given. And of course, Natsume. But that was also a given.

His glare intensified today though. And the room's temperature turned up a notch. It was desperately hot.

"Natsume, if you're gonna frown and glare any more than that, you'll look old faster than everyone else." Mikan said. "And you'll get wrinkles early."

"Whatever, Ichigo-kara." Natsume muttered. Mikan fumed, and thus started their daily bickerings.

Ruka, however, was too busy to watch today's episode of "Natsume VS. Mikan". Though he's quite sure it wouldn't matter who wins this round, as the score was Natsume: 84, Mikan: 12. She still has a lot to catch up on. Ruka shook his head. No, he mustn't get distracted. Natsume gave him a task. An important task. He has to concentrate, damnit!

"_Prove to me that you're not the admirer. Find out who it is by lunch."_

Natsume can be pretty scary and demanding. Sometimes, Ruka _hates _being his best friend. He wonders why people are jealous of his position, when they have absolutely no idea what that entails. '_They are soooo lucky._' He thought to himself.

Anyway, focus. Ruka needed to focus. Now, how is he going to find out who the admirer is? Maybe he should start by eliminating the suspects. There's Kitsuneme…

"That's just gross, Kitsu!" Nonoko said from the other end of the classroom. In front of her, Kitsuneme grins and wiggles the chopsticks stuck in his nose. The boys laugh, while the girls rolled their eyes. Some giggled quietly.

"You have no sense of humor, Nonoko." Kitsuneme said. Ruka shook his head.

There's no _way_ Mikan would be excited to get a kiss from Kitsu. Just, no. Alright, next up is himself, Ruka, but he already knows it's not him. Obviously. Who in the right mind would persecute himself? Anyway, who else?

"Why do I feel like I'm forgetting something?" Ruka whispers to himself.

Then Narumi-sensei walks in, and the whole class became quiet, if only because of his outrageous outfit. One of his _many_, unfortunately. Wait, isn't Narumi-sensei one of the suspects?

"Good morning class!" He says. Cheerfully. Natsume twitches beside Ruka. "I hope you all did your homework yesterday!"

Ah. So that's it.

Ruka forgot to remind Natsume that he burnt his essay yesterday.

Oh well.

* * *

><p>Ruka decided that it couldn't have been Narumi-sensei.<p>

No matter how hard he tried, Ruka just can't think of a reason for Narumi (_'that ballet-dancing, diva twat with the feather boa'_) to start becoming a pedophile. Even if Natsume insisted otherwise. After all, Mikan is awfully close with Narumi-sensei. And she calls him 'papa'. She even slept with him! Who knows what horrors Narumi-sensei could have done with Mikan's precious, virgin body?

And Mikan is unknowingly falling for the trap!

…

As if.

Ruka decided Narumi-sensei is more gay, than anything else. Homosexual, or pedophile? Either way, quite a scandalous controversy we have here. Ruka casts his vote on homosexual though.

So, without much of a reason, Ruka crossed out Narumi-sensei. That leaves the Class Rep.

Yuu.

… Seriously?

Ruka can't even begin to _fathom_ how Yuu, of all people, would tell Mikan that he would _kiss_ her. It's just not possible, and it's totally out of character. If Yuu started courting Mikan with _kisses_, then Natsume might as well be bald. And Ruka be damned if he ever saw his best friend bald.

That would just be the end of Natsume's fame. He could see it now, in the school headlines: "Famous kuroneko gets a shave (in the head)." Ruka doesn't think it would go too well with their fan club. And though Ruka hates fans, he likes the fact he _has_ a fan club, and Natsume's bald head would sabotage that fact.

Because really, who cares if Natsume shaved his head? Ruka wouldn't think any of it as long as he still has fans.

But anyway, Natsume's nightmarish baldiness of bald is NOT Ruka's mission (or, uhm, anti-mission) at the moment.

So anyway, Yuu kissing Mikan = Natsume's bald head. Both of which are incredulously possible, but highly unlikely. Yuu wouldn't go for it. He's too scared of Imai and Natsume to do that. And if rumors have spread about it, Yuu should be freaking out by now, right? Ruka looks at Yuu from the back of the classroom. He sighs when he sees Yuu perfectly calm and quiet, studiously taking notes from the lecture.

No, it can't be Yuu. Not unless he's been hiding his inner boy charm and confident bravado.

So who can it be? Ruka thought hard, concentrating on his mission. Unfortunately, Natsume's bald head pops up every five seconds and Ruka can't concentrate. So he tries not to think about Natsume's bald head, in all its shining glory. But of course, the more you try not to thinkof something, the more your mind actually focuses on it. So instead, Ruka tried to think of something else. Like pink elephants in a bikini.

But then the bell rang.

Oh crap.

Lunch time.

"Natsume's gonna kill me." Ruka muttered. He stood up and scanned the room, taking in a deep breath. He has approximately six more minutes before Natsume would ask who the admirer is. Six more minutes. Now is not the time for pink elephants or bald kuronekos.

Ruka felt the dread come up. Usually he isn't so scared of Natsume. So why is he now? Unless… he's actually the admirer. No way! But then, what if he sleeptalked to Mikan? What if he really did like her? Or maybe he sleepwrote a love note? Is it really him? Is that even possible?

"Do I like Mikan?" Ruka's eyes widened, and he turned his head to see Koko standing behind him. Koko smiled, and continued talking. "Shit, it was just Koko."

Ruka scowled. "Stop reading my mind Koko."

Wait. Koko.

"Maybe Koko is the admirer." Koko said, his face still plastered with a smile. "Maybe he's the one who will kiss Mikan. It's surprising, but not impossible. For heaven's sake, shut up and stop reading my mind Koko!"

"Koko!"

"Sorry, I can't help it." Koko said. "Aren't you going to lunch?"

Ruka eyed the mind reader. "Tell me first. Are you Mikan's admirer? The one who will give her kisses?"

Koko raised an eyebrow. "Kisses?" He laughed. "I wouldn't give Mikan kisses. Yuu is."

"He is?"

"Yeah." Koko said confidently. "Kisses are like, cheap man. I wouldn't give those to a girl if I really like her."

Ruka stared. Koko continued to talk like Ruka wasn't gaping at him like a goldfish.

"If I liked a girl, I'd give her more than just kisses, you know? I mean come on, kisses are too simple. If you like a girl, and I mean really _really_ like her, you should go further than that. Oh, and I read Yuu's mind a while ago, and he was looking forward to give Mikan kisses, so if that's what you're looking for, then there you go."

Did Koko just seriously gave Ruka the answer to his mission?

"Mission huh? Well yeah, I guess I did." Koko grinned.

"Stop reading my mind, Koko!"

Koko laughed. "Okay. But you have to stop thinking of me actually going naked on a girl, Ruka. That's just disturbing."

Ruka blushed. "It's your fault for saying things!"

Koko rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Let's just go get some lunch." He smirked when Ruka blushed more.

* * *

><p>Yuu was in big trouble.<p>

He didn't even know what he did this time. All he knew was that Natsume was looking down on him, glaring in all his fierceness and intensity, and seething silently throughout lunch like Yuu was gonna be his next meal. He might as well growl predatorily and actually _bite_ Yuu.

Ruka couldn't say anything against it. He wasn't allowed to. This also came with being Natsume's best friend.

It's either he lives, or Yuu lives. And as much as he respected Yuu and treated him as a friend, Ruka would rather save his own ass.

"What's going on?" Mikan asked when she sat down at the lunch table. "Why is Natsume so hot-headed today?"

Nobody spoke a word.

"He's mad at Yuu because he's giving kisses later." Koko said, smiling. "Where's Hotaru?"

Except for the ever straightforward Koko.

"Oh, she's working on her invention for the contest. Huh, I see Nonoko and Anna aren't here too. They must be preparing hard." Mikan said. She turned to Natsume. "What, are you jealous or something Natsume?" She laughed, and everyone inched away slowly from Natsume. Ruka sighed.

How dense can she be?

Natsume ignored the girl and stared down on Yuu. "Speak. Now." He commanded.

Yuu gulped. Everyone can feel the tension, and so they set out to do other things to distract themselves. Mochu and Kitsuneme have been strangely quiet all day, and now, during lunch, they contented themselves with eating the cafeteria food in silence. Koko smiled, reading everyone's minds and amusing himself with this whole fiasco. Sumire was nowhere to be found. Mikan was a little put out to be the only girl in the group at the moment, and to also be lost about the whole situation. Ruka just watched.

Like the good best friend he is.

"I think I understand now." Yuu said. "Natsume, the kisses I was gonna give Mikan aren't-"

Natsume burned Yuu's lunch. "So you _are_ going to give her kisses."

"Natsume, it's not what you think. Listen-!"

The temperature in the cafeteria rose significantly.

"I'm gonna kill Yuu. I will." Koko said. His smile never left his face.

"Koko, shut up and eat your asparagus." Natsume said. "And don't read my mind."

"Gee Natsume, don't get so worked up about everything." Mikan said. She sighed and pushed her plate, not having the apetite to eat. "If you're that jealous, then you should have asked for some kisses. I'd be glad to share some with you. Geez!"

...

Ruka stared. Natsume glared. Mochu's eyes widened. Kitsuneme smirked. Yuu was a sweating mess. Koko smirked.

Did she seriously just-?

"Mikan, be careful with what you-" Yuu started, but he was cut off by Natsume.

"Is this all a joke to you?" Natsume glowered, standing up, and the rest of the cafeteria fell to silence. Mikan blinked, then yelped when she felt Natsume's strong hands yanking her through the hair. "Do you even _care_ about what other people may be feeling right now? You can't just ask someone to kiss you randomly! Especially not if you're in a relationship with someone else like Yuu, baka Mikan!"

Ruka's eyes widened. It takes a lot for Natsume to burst with emotions just like that. Especially in public.

Now, Ruka didn't know if he should interfere or not. The "Natsume's Best Friend Manual" didn't say anything about this.

"Kiss you?" Mikan exclaimed. "Are you serious?"

"And to think, you'd be sharing boy cooties with Yuu, Mikan!" Natsume yelled. "Boy cooties! Have some respect for yourself!"

And this is where Mikan burst into laughter, followed by Yuu and Koko.

* * *

><p>If Ruka learned anything from being Natsume's best friend, it was that the kuroneko absolutely <em>hates<em> being a.) wrong, b.) deceived or tricked, and c.) humiliated. Unfortunately, Natsume felt all three at the moment. He wouldn't admit it, of course, but he didn't need to admit it anyway. So Natsume just sulked in his own corner, and Ruka sat beside him like a good follower/best friend.

He should get awarded for the job he's doing. Really, he should.

"So all this time, the rumors were about kisses chocolate?" Ruka reiterated. He tried not to gape like a goldfish again. Because really, the whole situation is just ridiculous. "As in, Hershey's Kisses Chocolate?" To think that Natsume paid 50 000 Rabbits for _this_.

It's sort of anti-climatic, really.

"Yep!" Mikan said with a wide grin. "Yuu was able to get some from the other day. They're hard to come by in Central Town, so we didn't want to make it known, especially since we only got a few. People might get jealous." Then she laughed again. "I can't believe you thought I was gonna kiss Yuu though! I mean, I really like Yuu as a friend, but seriously Natsume! Uh, no offense, Iinchou."

"None taken." Yuu smiled. "I was actually surprised since I actually believed the rumors. It's embarrassing that I didn't realize they were about us."

Beside him, Koko was still laughing.

Mochu and Kitsuneme, meanwhile, were sweating buckets. Natsume glared at them from his corner.

"You are all going to be dead." He hissed.

Ruka shook his head. How much of a mess this whole misunderstanding has become. And to think, Natsume actually yelled in the cafeteria about boy cooties. _Boy cooties._ Need he say more?

* * *

><p><em>That night, at the school rooftop…<em>

"That was a close one, wasn't it?"

Mikan turned around to face her companion. "Yea. Natsume almost found out, but it's not like we lied to him about the chocolate. Hey, hey, look! The stars are pretty tonight, aren't they?"

Koko chuckled. "We'll be in big trouble if someone finds us here."

"They won't! We'll be extra careful this time." Mikan said. She fished for something in her paper bag. She offered it to Koko. "Kisses?"

Koko grinned, and placed a small peck on her cheek. "Just on the cheek. Natsume might get angry if he saw any boy cooties on your lips."

Mikan laughed.

* * *

><p>Okay! Well, the ending seems rushed and anti-climatic. Sorry about that. And sorry for the crappy plot thingy. Did anyone expect this at all? Tell me what you think!<p>

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Hershey's Chocolate, Gakuen Alice or anything related to Hershey's Chocolate and Gakuen Alice, except this piece of literary work. This is only written for amusement and entertainment purposes only. I make no money or profit from this.


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